ESCANABA — The Ruth Butler building at the U.P. State Fairgrounds in Escanaba was a busy place this week. Volunteers gathered there collecting food, clothing and toys to assemble the annual St. Vincent de Paul Christmas baskets for needy families in the area. This year, 280 families picked ...

LANSING (AP) — Gov. Rick Snyder on Friday signed laws to significantly scale back citizen-initiated measures to raise Michigan's minimum wage and require paid sick leave for workers, finalizing an unprecedented Republican-backed legislative maneuver that opponents vowed to challenge in ...

GLADSTONE — The Gladstone Ski Hill is gearing up for another winter season of skiing, snowboarding and tubing. The ski hill, located in the John and Melissa Besse Sports Park at 900 N. Bluff Dr. off M-35, opens Dec. 21. “We open up with our holiday hours — so for the whole time the ...

LANSING (AP) — Michigan drivers who renew their registration would have to opt out to avoid paying an $11 fee that allows unlimited entry into state parks under a bill advancing in the Legislature. Currently motorists must opt into paying the Recreation Passport fee when renewing their ...

LANSING (AP) — Michigan lawmakers have voted to regulate dog sales and restrict local bans on pet shops, advancing bills that are backed by the pet industry but opposed by animal rights activists. One measure approved 23-14 in the Republican-controlled Senate Thursday would prohibit ...

LANSING (AP) — A state panel has recommended awarding $26 million in grants for outdoor recreation projects and land purchases. The Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund board this week forwarded its selections to the state Legislature for consideration. Its 2018 list includes $7.4 ...

ESCANABA — Northern Screen Printing and Embroidery was able to surpass its goal of 500 anti-bullying T-shirts to donate 2,400 T-shirts to local schools because of the support of other local businesses. The shirts read “kindness changes everything,” with the back displaying all of the ...

MANISTIQUE — Employees of Manistique’s water/wastewater department were recently honored for the role they played in averting a potential crisis. On Monday, Nov. 26, Water/Wastewater Superintendent Corey Barr, Lead Water Treatment Plant Operator Rebekah Weber and Water Distribution and ...

ESCANABA — A recently-established task force created with the aim of improving mental health services and support in the area has already shown signs of being successful, according to Delta-Schoolcraft Intermediate School District Superintendent Doug Leisenring. Leisenring organized the task ...

TRAVERSE CITY (AP) — Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration said Thursday it had wrapped up negotiations with Enbridge Inc. on building a tunnel to contain an oil pipeline beneath a Great Lakes waterway. Snyder’s office released a series of agreements with the Canadian pipeline ...

ESCANABA — Students at Bay College have been able to share their art with the community in Bay’s fall 2018 student art show, which is currently on display in the Besse Center Gallery. A reception for this exhibition took place at the college Tuesday. Bay’s fall 2018 student art show ...

ESCANABA — The Escanaba Recreation Department is ready to open up its new ice rink behind the Catherine Bonifas Civic Center — but Mother Nature isn’t so willing. “It’s just a waiting game with the weather, but we’re ready. As soon as the weather starts to get cold, we’re ready ...

GLADSTONE — Decorated fire trucks and Christmas music will fill the streets of Gladstone and surrounding areas with Christmas cheer Sunday, Dec. 16. The Christmas Candy Cane Can Food Drive is a holiday tradition for the Gladstone Public Safety Department, and this year, the Christmas- themed ...

LANSING (AP) — Michigan Republicans moved Wednesday to curtail ballot initiatives by advancing a measure limiting how many signatures could come from any one region of the state, the latest proposal assailed by critics as an unconstitutional, lame-duck power grab from voters or incoming ...

Clarissa Kell | Daily Press Roger Lafreniere hugs Santa Claus after presents were handed out to students at the Delta-Schoolcraft ISD Learning Center Tuesday. The gifts were part of the annual Christmas party for the children put on by the Escanaba Rotary Club. Rotary has sponsored Christmas ...

ESCANABA — State Rep. Beau LaFave recently introduced a bill to end Michigan’s 40-year-old bottle deposit law because he believes it will help boost community recycling programs and relieve the strain put on local businesses that have return stations. The Michigan Beverage Container Act, ...

MANISTIQUE — Two Escanaba residents were arraigned recently for vandalizing 15 tombstones in Lakeview Cemetery in Manistique in September. Manistique Public Safety Officers arrested Rachel Ann Scott, 18, and Cutter Lee Norman, 18, both of Escanaba. Manistique Public Safety Director ...

MANISTIQUE — A recount of Schoolcraft County’s general election votes on a county jail millage request and District One’s seat on the Schoolcraft County Board of Commissioners will be held on Friday, Dec. 14. This recount, which will be conducted by the Board of County Canvassers, will ...

LANSING (AP) — The Michigan Legislature approved a bill Tuesday that would allow the replacement of a 65-year-old oil pipeline in a key Great Lakes waterway, voting to create a state authority that would oversee the construction of a tunnel to encase a new segment of pipe. Most Republicans ...

LANSING (AP) — Gov. Rick Snyder says he won’t sign bills he may not like in exchange for the Republican-controlled Legislature passing trash and water fee increases he’s proposing to help fund environmental cleanup and upgrade infrastructure. Snyder didn’t tip his hand Tuesday when ...